Moss Gate

by Alex Linwood

  Lady Harper sighed. “Yes. We built that city. The Elven kingdom bordered the seas for a long time.” She shut the book and held it for a second before setting it down again and facing Portia. “But we are not as entirely innocent as you might think. It’s true we built Coverack. But it was built on the ashes of the city that had been there before, one whose name I do not know. One built by dwarves.” Sitting heavily into a chair. “As angry as we are at the humans, the most truthful amongst us must admit our own guilt. We have done just the same. We pushed others out of their home.”

  This was news to Portia. Turning slowing away from her bag, she gapped at Lady Harper. She wanted to ask more, but all her questions were a jumble in her mind.

  Lady Harper waved away her gaze. “I’m sure some historian will be thrilled to bore you with the history, young friend. Truly, I don’t have many details to share with you. It’s not much spoken of here,” Lady Harper said.

  Portia nodded. She would try to be patient. Her stomach growled. Even with her large breakfast, she was hungry again.

  Lady Harper heard the noise and snorted. “Your stomach is as regular as that hourglass. I think it is lunchtime. What say you?” She shook her head. “Why am I asking? You’re always ready to eat, I’ve noticed.”

  Portia could not disagree with her. It was embarrassing that Lady Harper had noticed, but not nearly enough to shame Portia from wanting more food.

  “I’ll see what the arrangements are for lunch,” Lady Harper said. “Stay here.”

  When Lady Harper exited, Portia picked up the book again. She wanted to see if it said anything about dwarves. She didn’t think it likely since she barely recognized the description of elves, but it was worth trying. Skimming the book quickly, she saw nothing but more descriptions of bloodshed in the city streets, but one section did catch her eye. It was describing elves performing magic. The human narrator had never seen such a thing before. He was fascinated. It had been amazingly effective at rebuffing the human advances into the city, until the invaders began to plan for it. Nowhere did it speak of a human performing magic. If that was so, then when did humans learn to do magic?

  But even with the best planning on the invaders part, the Elven magic had been effective enough to chase the humans back to the island they had come from—the island beneath the gate. When the invaders were pushed back, their retreat was complicated by the presence of other humans. Humans from a different tribe. They were not friendly, and the author spoke of despair of ever surviving since they now had to fight on two fronts: the new human invaders, and the enraged and put-upon elves defending their lands. Portia chewed her lip reading this. Humans sounded awful. War sounded awful.

  Lady Harper knocked on the door. “Ready to see the dining hall?”

  Portia’s stomach responded with a loud rumble. She ducked her head in embarrassment and quickly put the book down.

  Lady Harper led her back down the tower and towards the main castle. To Portia’s surprise, when they entered the cavernous dining hall, she saw the king and queen, as well as nobles seated on long tables, along with household staff and others.

  She turned to Lady Harper. “The king eats here? With everyone else?” It didn’t look right. Only his finer clothes marked him apart, although she did notice that most of the nobles sat together and away from the king, occasionally sending him sharp looks. They sent their sharp looks towards many others in the room as well.

  “Yes, he does. The new way of eating was one of the changes King Magnus instituted when he became king. He wants to know more about the workings of the castle, as well as the concerns of the staff. It infuriates the nobles.” Lady Harper sniffed. “You should hear their ire when the king goes on the streets to talk to his citizens. One or two of them might just die of stress and upset. Silly creatures.”

  While Portia watched, a commoner approached the king, giving him a bow and then taking the seat the king indicated near him. The nobles at the nearby table glared at the commoner who studiously kept his gaze away from them. The nobles were trying to intimidate the poor man, but neither he nor the king paid them any attention. Portia stifled a laugh. She liked this king.

  Lady Harper and Portia sat at the far end of the long table the nobles were seated at. Portia wished they could have sat anywhere else, but there were no open spots. Where they sat was not a popular place. A few of the nobles glared down the table at them, but Portia ignored them.

  A server quickly brought them boards filled with food and glasses of ale. Portia ate quickly. She was gratified when the server brought her a second serving after she finished her first. At least she would not go hungry here.

  “Where can I learn more here about Coverack when it was Elvin? It might be helpful to know that history,” Portia asked Lady Harper. If the elves were the root of magic, perhaps this was somehow important.

  But one of the noblemen must have been listening to the conversation for he piped in after her comment before Lady Harper could respond. “You know nothing of this? And yet you are Friend of the Elves? This is a bad omen. You are too ignorant.”

  Portia knew she shouldn’t respond, but his arrogant tone and disregard was just too much. “I’m still in school. I’m still learning.”

  “You’ll not learn anything of value in that human kingdom,” the nobleman replied with disdain.

  “That is terrible to hear. Please tell me where I can learn. Is the knowledge in your library?” Portia asked, putting an innocent tone into her voice.

  “Of course it’s in our library. You should read it,” he said.

  “Then I will. By your invitation,” Portia said, smiling at him sweetly. Lady Harper chuckled as she sipped her ale. “Who do I owe this great debt to?” Portia looked at him from under her eyelashes.

  The nobleman sputtered at her reply.

  Lady Harper leaned towards Portia and whispered in a voice meant for the nobleman to hear. “It is Lord Conwood.”

  Portia nodded her thanks to Lady Harper and then turned to Lord Conwood. “Thank you, Lord Conwood. I’ll convey your respects to the librarian.”

  The nobleman looked at Lady Harper and then back at Portia, a frown growing on his face as he realized he’d been tricked. Somehow he had offered the use of their library to Portia. He couldn’t take it back now without looking like a fool. He scowled and looked away, finishing the rest of his meal quickly.

  Portia was drinking the last of her ale when King Magnus rose. All the diners scrambled to their feet. On his way out the door, he walked past Lady Harper and Portia where he paused and addressed Lady Harper. “See that our young friend makes it to the library this afternoon. Lord Conwood is a generous man.”

  “Yes, Your Highness,” Lady Harper said.

  Lord Conwood’s face turned red, and his fist clenched as he heard the exchange.

  Portia looked down at her food. The king must have heard her exchange with the nobleman. She hoped she hadn’t offended him. But he had offered the use of the library, so perhaps all was well.

  The king left. Portia turned to the noblemen and saw them as one staring at her, their glares fierce, but none as daunting as Lord Conwood’s angry countenance. A few had their mouths hanging open. At her gaze, they quickly looked away, some muttering in anger. The last to turn was Lord Conwood. Her heart sank. This was not good. She had made enemies. Powerful ones. And she had done so in less than half a day.

  But Lady Harper did not seem concerned.

  The library was a part of the castle itself. It was also made of the ruby red stones. It was as large as the main library on the campus of the Academy grounds. It must have taken a significant part of the castle, and it looked like it had been expanded from its original size, for in some areas parts of the red stone looked cut away, as if two separate rooms had been joined.

  “I’ll come and collect you later,” Lady Harper said. “I have official business to attend to. The librarian will help you. She’s been here for as long as I can remember. She knows everythin
g there is to know about these tomes.” Lady Harper pointed to a small elf seated in the corner of the library.

  The librarian was hard to see at first since she had white hair and white clothing and was sitting by a set of glowing white candles. She was reading a book beneath their light. The elf looked ancient—like Sir Alboka, but in miniature.

  The elf flashed Portia a huge smile when she approached. She had so many wrinkles on her face that it was hard to see her gray eyes. But her voice was clear and melodic, belying her age. “You look for something, yes, my young friend?” The elf spoke in common but with a heavy accent. Portia could barely understand what she said.

  “Yes. I want to learn more about the city now called Coverack, in Haulstatt,” Portia said.

  “We have little current information about Coverack.” Her smile drooped a bit.

  “I mean, I guess I want to know more about it when it was an Elven city. I don’t know what it was called back then.”

  The elf leapt to her feet, surprisingly fast for being so old. “That is a different matter. There is no common word for the name of the city, it is only known in Elven.” She sang a short melodic phrase. Portia didn’t understand why. “That was the name of the city,” the elf explained. Portia knew she would never be able to remember that. Was the entire Elven language also sung?

  The librarian led her to a wall of books. “These books are about the old land, before the Eternal Wall was built. They should have the information you seek.”

  She pulled one of the books from the wall and gave it to Portia, who opened it to read. The script was nothing she had ever seen before. It curved and rolled more complexly than even the cursive of the common tongue. Sweat broke out on her brow. She couldn’t understand it.

  The librarian noticed her consternation. “Can you not read Elven?”

  Portia shook her head. Tears pricked her eyes. The magnitude of the challenge ahead of her became clearer. What if the spells she was to learn were also written in the Elven tongue and no one would explain them to her? How would she ever learn them? It would be possible to learn Elven, of course, but would take a great deal of time. The image of the huge hourglass flashed in front of her. Time was not something she had a great deal of.

  “Enough of that,” said the librarian, scolding. She patted Portia on the hand and then took the book from her. She flicked her fingers at Portia and sang a sharp tune rising in pitch so high that Portia’s ears first hurt then couldn’t hear anything. She looked at the elf directly and could see her mouthing words, but not a single tone reached her ears. The elf stopped singing, then beamed at Portia with a smug look on her face. “Okay dear, you’re set.”

  Portia did not understand what she meant.

  The librarian gave the book back to Portia. “Read it, dear.”

  Portia opened the book. It looked just the same as before. She looked at the librarian, confused.

  “Try to unsee the letters.”

  “Unsee? What does that mean?” Portia asked.

  “Look down at them, but don’t look at them directly. Unfocus your eyes. Relax. Breathe in deeply and just stare ahead, sort of in their direction.” The librarian smiled at her reassuringly.

  Portia look down at the book again. She tried to relax her gaze and not look at any word in particular. Nothing happened. She glanced up, but the librarian waved for her to look down at the book again. Portia tried again. She gazed down in the general direction of the book but didn’t look at any particular line or word. She concentrated her breathing in and out. Out of the corner of an eye a word flickered in the air above the book. She tried to look at the word directly and it disappeared. She gave a heavy sigh and then concentrated on her breathing again, and on unfocusing her eyes. Suddenly, the entire page, written in common, floated above the original page of the book. It was a translation that floated in space above the original text of the book. She gasped in surprise. When she tried to focus directly on the translation it disappeared again. Portia stifled the frustration she felt. She didn’t want to appear ungrateful to the elf. She would just have to practice, for the technique did not come naturally to her.

  “That is amazing,” Portia said. “Thank you.”

  “Oh, it’s just a little spell I know. You’re set now,” the librarian said, patting Portia’s hand.

  “How long does this last for?”

  “A few decades, give or take. Long enough I suppose. They came up with it ’bout a thousand years ago,” the elf said as she walked away. “That book in your hands will tell you what you want to know.”

  Portia watched her go, amazed. Lady Harper had told her the Eternal Wall was about a thousand years old. That spell must have been needed for the elves to communicate with the humans, and perhaps the dwarves as well.

  Sitting down at a nearby table with the book, Portia opened it to the beginning. It had an introduction telling what the book was about. It promised a tale of the elf warriors recovering some prisoners from the humans who had taken them. The elves had also healed the splinter, what Portia thought was the same thing the humans called a gate, to the other world. Old elf magic healed the splinter. This must be the magic she was sent here to learn.

  She sighed heavily and put the book down for a moment. It was a lot to take in. But she needed to know what the book said, so she picked it up and pushed on.

  Lady Harper found her there several hours later. Even with the translation, the book was difficult to read, and Portia was tired. She looked up at Lady Harper standing over her. Lady Harper had dark circles under her eyes. Her face was drawn. She looked as exhausted as Portia felt.

  Lady Harper leaned against the table. “You’ll meet your teacher today, even though your lessons don’t begin until tomorrow. The king will introduce you, for it is his great uncle who will teach you.”

  “The teacher is royalty?” Portia said.

  “The teacher would have been king, but he thought preserving the knowledge of healing a splinter was a higher duty to his people. Few can do it. Legends have it that many of his close advisors were irate, saying that the last splinter was healed forever and there was no more threat. But he would not listen, no matter how much they yelled.” Lady Harper rubbed her eyes. “Luckily for us, he had great foresight. His name is Lord Fife, but he prefers no title. You’ll see soon enough.”

  Portia rose. She clutched the book close to her to take it with her, but Lady Harper put a hand on the tome and shook her head.

  “All books in the library must remain here,” Lady Harper said. “You’ll be allowed to return.”

  Portia reluctantly put the book back on the shelf. But before walking away she pulled it back out again, just a bit, so it stuck out a half inch more than the other books. She wanted to be able to find the book again.

  They met King Magnus and a single guard by the entryway to the castle. Portia was surprised to see him standing there waiting. She never thought she would ever see royalty wait for her. She ducked her head down in embarrassment. He was dressed much more casually, and if she had not known he was the king, she would have thought he was a merchant from the city—and a modest merchant at that. She still was amazed at the wealth she had seen in the merchant district of the inner city. Portia wondered at the change in the king’s appearance.

  There was a carriage waiting for them in front of the castle. It too was much more modest than she expected. Portia sat next to Lady Harper, and King Magnus sat opposite them. His guard rode standing on the back. The carriage took a path through a quiet part of the city. It looked like a forest, but Portia knew they were still within the city grounds. The woods went on for quite a while. If it was a park, it was an enormous one. At the far end of it, buildings made with blue stone appeared. They looked like the buildings at the Academy in Coverack. Did the elves create the Academy in Coverack as well as the buildings here? Were all magical buildings blue?

  A bell sounded while they exited the carriage, and masses of Elven students poured down the steps of a nea
rby building. Portia felt a little homesick seeing them. She walked down the path with the others and thought of her friends back in Coverack. She wondered what Liam, Richard, Mia, and Ella were doing. Did they miss her? Magisend was probably relishing how far behind Portia would be when she got back. Portia stopped walking in surprise. It was shocking to realize she even missed Magisend Lucy Gwynn of House Riddlepit. Shaking her head at that, Portia caught up with the others. She must truly be feeling ill to miss Magisend, her archenemy at the school.

  They came upon a smaller building set aside from all the rest. It was in the midst of a beautiful yard of wildflowers, surrounded by a low white fence. It looked more like a private cottage than a school building. The king opened the fence gate personally and waved Lady Harper and Portia to enter. He shut it behind him, preventing the guard from following. The guard nodded. He turned and stood at attention in front of the gate.

  The king knocked on the door, and an elderly female elf answered. She wore a black dress and white cap.

  The elderly elf led them past two dark front rooms in the cottage. They looked little used. They continued until they stepped into a huge sunlit kitchen with yellow painted walls. All the light in the cottage seemed to be concentrated in the kitchen and nowhere else.

  King Magnus paused just inside the entrance to the kitchen and made a bow. An elderly elf sat in a high-backed wheelchair by the fire. He was covered in warm blankets despite the heat in the room. Lady Harper gave a curtsey. Portia quickly performed a curtsey as well. The elf in the chair raised a wizened hand at them and acknowledged their entrance.

  The female elf ushered them to a long table that faced the wheelchair. They all sat facing the man while the female elf made them all tea. It was a homey setting. Portia would have enjoyed it more, but she was uncomfortable knowing that she was sitting in this intimate setting with the king of the elves, as well as someone so revered that the king of the elves bowed to him.